The zoo breeds Hamadryas baboons as part of the Species Survival Plan (SSP), a cooperative breeding program administered by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The Wildlife Conservation Society, which runs the Prospect Park Zoo, explains that two baboons born there last year have been sent to another AZA-accredited zoo where they will eventually start their own breeding troop.

Hamadryas baboons are native to northeastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.